7/5/2014 Panoptes - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panoptes 1/1
Panoptes
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In Greek mythology, Panoptes (Ancient Greek: ; English translation: "the all-seeing") was an epithet for
both Helios and Argus.
Argus Panoptes was a giant with a hundred eyes. He was also the nymph Io's brother. He was thus a very effective
watchman, as only a few of the eyes would sleep at a time; there were always eyes still awake. Argus was Hera's
servant. His great service to the Olympic pantheon was to slay the chthonic serpent-legged monster Echidna as she
slept in her cave.
[1]
Hera's last task for Argus was to guard a white heifer from Zeus. She charged him to "Tether
this cow safely to an olive-tree at Nemea". Hera knew that the heifer was in reality Io, one of the many nymphs
Zeus was coupling with to establish a new order.
To free Io, Zeus had Argus slain by Hermes. Hermes, disguised as a shepherd, first put all of Argus's eyes asleep
with boring stories. To commemorate her faithful watchman, Hera had the hundred eyes of Argus preserved
forever, in a peacock's tail.
[2]
References
1. ^ Homer. Iliad, ii.783; Hesiod. Theogony, 295ff; Apollodorus, ii.i.2.
2. ^ Ovid I, 625.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Panoptes&oldid=576506435"
Categories: Greek giants Epithets of Helios
This page was last modified on 9 October 2013 at 22:14.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply.
By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia is a registered trademark
of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.